Grundfos supplies heavy-duty pumps to Taiwan water treatment plants

Overview

LAKE CHENGCHING, TAIWAN: Lake Chengching is one of the best-known scenic spots in the Kaohsiung area, offering attractions such as the Lakeside Park, the Nine-Corner Bridge, and the Chunghsing Pagoda. Very importantly, the lake also provides drinking water for the Kaohsiung region of Taiwan.
The quality of the drinking water was not sufficiently high, however, so a new Lake Chengching Water Treatment Plant project was launched in 2002. The objective of the project was to improve water quality in terms of colour, odour, and taste. The final solution, delivered in 2003, demonstrates the versatility of the Grundfos pump range by using ten 80 kW pumps to improve overall performance at the Chengching Water Treatment

The situation
After clarification, water from Lake Chengching is pumped into a pellet reactor for softening before being distributed to the end consumers. The water intake at the main pumping station varies between 16,880 m3/hour to 20,250 m3/hour. Obviously, this demands serious pump performance.
In the initial design, the location of the water intake openings leading from the water channels to the pump chamber itself would have caused less-than-perfect flow conditions for the pumps. Grundfos recommended a different solution to ensure good operating conditions, and as a result the intake openings were moved and enlarged in the new design specifications.

The Grundfos solution
The pumping station comprises 10 submersible 80 kW pumps, each with a capacity of 586 l/s. The pumps are installed in separate tubes, and three of them use frequency converters to adjust the required flow for maximum energy efficiency.
The pumps discharge the media into a 2000 mm pipe leading into the pellet reactor. With 8 pumps running in parallel, the total head is 11.6 m based on a static head of 7.8 m. The pumps are installed in tubes, so it is important that all cables and lifting chains are kept tight. The water flow should never cause any swinging movement during pump operation. To prevent this, Grundfos has developed a special clamp design which keeps the chains and cables locked together. These clamps are mounted on the top cover of the tubes, ensuring that cables are kept tight at all times.

In accordance with the customer’s wishes, special attention was paid to health and safety regulations and to protecting the environment. For example, the pumps use only non-toxic paint and vegetable oils to avoid any risk of contaminating the water.

The outcome
The customer has expressed full satisfaction with the solution. The pumps operate as promised, providing the Kaohsiung with better water while also protecting the beautiful Lake Chengching area.